Eboi, aka Eboi Da Rebel, is an emcee I’ve seen rock Bondfire’s open mic a handful of times and been impressed by more and more with each performance. At the September show he brought a chair up with him and rapped a deep, heartfelt song as he rose from a seated position. The performance left the entire crowd in awe. More than just an open mic act, Eboi has released a mixtape titled It’s Time 2 Get Live and is putting the finishing touches on his official debut album, The CrossRoads, which he plans on releasing in March. The Brooklyn native has also formed a duo called Real Deals with longtime friend Rahleek. This week I caught up with Eboi to find out how music, and good friends, saved him from the troubled path he was on, what his name is all about, and what dog food has to do with his music.

Adam Bernard: You were born and raised in Brooklyn. What were some of the biggest influences in your life growing up?Eboi: Church, music and the street life, in that exact order. Growing up I lived with my very religious grandmother, she enforced and made sure I was in church. She also made it her business for me to join the choir. I definitely thank my grandmother for that because joining the choir introduced me to the beautiful sounds of music. As I got older my choice of music switch from gospel to hip-hop. I started being attracted and drawn into that “lifestyle” these rappers talk about, feeling like if I could learn how to survive in the streets it would be considered my “right of passage.” After that my life switch from church life to the street life.

Adam Bernard: It sounds like you’re not as interested in that lifestyle now. In fact, your name, Eboi ,stands for Energy Based On Intelligence. How did you develop this nickname and what does it mean to you?Eboi: Before I was E.B.O.I I used to be Eboy (Young Energy). The name was giving to me by my peers growing up in the part of Canarsie known as the 80s. Back then I was going by my birth name, Emmanuel, but there was another Emmanuel around my way. The common nickname that would be given to someone named Emmanuel would be Manny or E-man, but being that the other Emmanuel was being called E-man, plus he was older than me, as a joke they called me Eboy. It’s said when you’re named something you give it its own nature, little did they know that by giving me that unique type of name they helped me to be more of my unique self. Back then my style was so explosive and all over the place, sort of like a child, so in a sense they kind of named me right. I then started learning and understanding more about myself both as an artist and as a man. I knew my capabilities and I felt like I came into existence, so I dropped the Y and replaced it with an I and created an acronym Energy Based On Intelligence. I call myself that because that’s what I believe, I believe that everything in existence is energy based on the intelligence of the creator.

Adam Bernard: That’s the Eboi part of you, but I know your full name is Eboi Da Rebel, so what’s the Rebel part of you, and how much trouble has it gotten you into?Eboi: Well, my rebelliousness started as a resentment for authority, then it just grew into me just being myself. I feel like all of us are unique and different, but yet something is forcing us to conform to what society is saying is the norm, so by deciding to be myself it seemed like I created a lot of enemies, some of them secret, because I had upset what was considered to be for them the social order. Just being a rebel without a cause led me down some dangerous roads where I've experimented with and sold drugs, I've been arrested for promoting prostitution, credit card larceny, and identity theft. I was going through it around those times, which was greatly needed because I saw who my true friends were. I had to stop rocking with certain people, but at the same time I gained a whole community of people who I saw really truly loved and supported me. They all scrambled up money to pay for my bail, which was ten thousand dollars by the way, and they put me through it for weeks with their lectures on staying out of trouble. I took heed to it and listened to their advice and started focusing on what I loved the most, what I had forgotten about during my stage of trying to get money illegally - I got back to the music. Six months after I came home from Rikers Island I created my first mixtape, which I titled It’s Time 2 Get Live, symbolizing that it’s time for me to get back to life. I started hitting the underground scenes performing in different clubs, and now a year later I'm here answering questions about my life on AdamsWorldBlog. Holla back! {laughs}

Adam Bernard: You know it! We met through Bondfire’s open mic where I saw how intense your live performances are. How do you go about preparing to hit the stage and what do you hope the audience gets out of each performance?Eboi: I have a little ritual that I do before each performance where I drink hot tea to soothe my voice and keep my throat clear. I visualize how I want the audience to react to me and I pace back and forth visualizing myself already on stage. I like to use props and create audience interactions and I drop many jewels in my songs because I want the audience to leave my shows not only entertained, but inspired and motivated to go out there and live out there own dreams.

Adam Bernard: Is this the “pill in the dog food method” I’ve heard you talk about? What do you mean by that?Eboi: It seems a lot of people love the music that’s out right now, songs that are about the money, hoes and clothes, the flashy life, and you already know we all love that gangster shit. I don't necessarily think that’s a bad thing because I love some of that music, as well, but it can get kind of annoying when it gets redundant. So even though I may indulge in creating those types of songs, in my own unique way, sometimes I like to introduce my audience to something fresh, unique, interesting, totally out the box, and at the same time try to keep it hip-hop. So I say I make the “pill in the dog food” music because I feed the people what they want, but then I slip them what they need, which is new information from a different perspective.

Adam Bernard: Finally, I know you feel hip-hop is in a stage of transformation. Any ideas on what it’s transforming into, what may influence it, and what it may influence, next?Eboi: I like this question and I want to get very metaphorical with it, but I'm just going to keep it simple to not go over some people’s heads {laughs}. Nature shows us everything has its season and if you know your history about hip-hop then you'll see that it is going back to the state in which it began, when it was all about peace, love and having fun.